The Internet provides a new arena for electronic commerce in which credit card companies are very interested. Quite naturally, since “commerce” is a necessary part of e-commerce, it stands to note that providing for the transfer of funds and credit during e-commerce transactions bodes well for those credit card companies that can securely provide for such transactions. One of the main concerns that continues with respect to e-commerce is the lack of trust that the consuming public has in the security of such transactions to protect their credit card and banking accounts.
One current method for obtaining a credit card from a credit card company on-line is for the user to fill out a credit card application at the credit card company's website, and then if approved, the credit card company will send a physical credit card to the user who can then activate the credit card by calling a toll-free number from the user's home phone. However, credit card theft is abundant, and according to some reports, accounts for half of the monetary loss of the credit card companies.
To eliminate the need for a physical credit card, another prior art method is to send to the user a smartcard for use in on-line transactions. However, the problem with a smartcard is one of expense, since use of a smartcard requires a smartcard reader to be installed on the user's computer.
As a result, there is a need in the art for a less expensive but reliable and secure process for enabling users to obtain a credit card authorization that they can use on their computer for facilitating purchases over the Internet.